By Tony Winterburn • Published: 21 May 2020 • 13:37
Barcelona’s local government has said it will consider taking “a step back” in terms of opening beaches if the crowds seen on Wednesday, the first day walks on the sand were allowed to continue.
Eloi Badia, the local Climate Emergency councillor, suggested on Wednesday evening restrictions could be once tightened again: “If we see that the desire to enjoy the beach, which is in our Mediterranean DNA, is stronger than the regulations, we will have to take a step back.
“In general, the people of Barcelona quickly understand rules, and we are sure we will be able to revert this situation,” he said concerning the crowds seen the first day beaches were opened during the 6am to 10am time slot, which is for people aged 14-70.
It is understood that the busiest seafronts were the Sant Miquel, Sant Sebastià and Barceloneta beaches, where, according to Badia, at times it was hard to maintain the safety distance. A top epidemiologist for Catalonia, Antoni Trilla, expressed concern about some images of the first day at beaches on the Catalunya Ràdio station: “This cannot go on by any means.”
He said there were “crowds” and people “not respecting rules” and that this could lead to new Covid-19 transmissions.
Share this story
Subscribe to our Euro Weekly News alerts to get the latest stories into your inbox!
By signing up, you will create a Euro Weekly News account if you don't already have one. Review our Privacy Policy for more information about our privacy practices.
Share your story with us by emailing newsdesk@euroweeklynews.com, by calling +34 951 38 61 61 or by messaging our Facebook page www.facebook.com/EuroWeeklyNews
By signing up, you will create a Euro Weekly News account if you don’t already have one. Review our Privacy Policy for more information about our privacy practices.
Download our media pack in either English or Spanish.